13,520 Garden Web Discussions | Perennials
Stop using the bone meal for starters. It has calcium, magnesium and phosphorous. Your calcium to magnesium ratio is high so perhaps adding magnesium alone might help. A pH of 7+ will slow the uptake of iron but maybe not enough with that amout of iron. I would suggest taking this to you local county extention office and see what they have to say. Some things can be corrected by having the proper ratios.
tj
I have gotten soil test by the county extension office here and it comes with specific targetted recommendations based on the results.
Did you get your test from the county extension?
If you suspect your water (well water I presume), then you should get that tested as well. Look for a private testing lab that does not do treatments to get the most objective results. It might cost some bucks. Around here it runs from $65 to $125 for various combinations of testing -- most of which are designed for potable water. Well water should be tested periodically.
Well, gb, the clematis look beautiful around the veggies.
Thanks for the invitation Woody, I've lurked in the Idylls for years and I see what a nice group you have going. I'm pretty reserved by nature and I feel like my garden has a way to go yet to be able to share much. Maybe one of these days I will show up though.
You are welcome. I am not employed with anyone. Just a old retired gradener. So am not one trying to sell you on one or the other. LOL I know how hard it is these days to find the best prices. I have been doing the same thing.
The problem is sometime we get things a little cheaper but the plants are not good.
I prefer cheap plants Marquest. lol It would be nice if my budget would allow a big order of named perennials in quart or gallon pots but it doesn't and I'm perfectly happy babying the little ones. They catch up. I was disappointed that Bluestone quit selling smaller plants. The regular prices at American Meadows would be too much for me for 3 inch pots but I thought their sale prices were pretty good. I looked up the "scoop" on Santa Rosa and American Meadows and they both had good reviews.
Aachnelf that is quite the list! Good example of how confusing a common name can be. My favorite bluebells are Mertensia virginica, and every year I winter-sow some and get a few seedlings. They take about 3 years to bloom from seed but what else better is there to do than wait for something as beautiful as bluebells to bloom.
I am not sure the best place to buy spanish bluebells. Hyacinthoides hispanica reseeds in my garden and eventually the clumps get quite sizeable and they are very easy to divide. We've finally gotten some winter weather so at the moment they are buried under about 6 inches of snow but by end of May they will bloom. Apparently they a good source of Spring nectar.
ocbrian, I did a google and then checked with Garden Watchdog for a rating what I found was Willow Creek might be a good one for you to order.
Maybe you could go to the trade area and post your want maybe you could get someone to send you some. I do not know which one I have because they were on the property when I purchased but I have millions of bulbs. LOL They do spread a lot.
I have found that, for me, yarrow does not like rich soil or extra fertilizer. It rather thrives on benign neglect and loves hot, sunny weather, but may wilt if it gets too dry.
Since it is rather vigorous under these conditions, I have divided mine to keep it in bounds, move it out of the shade, move it closer to some other plant for the color combo, give some away, etc. Sounds like you need to divide it.
prairiegirlz5 wrote:
I have found that, for me, yarrow does not like rich soil or extra fertilizer.
I think I agree.
This past spring I planted what as I recall was Strawberry Seduction in an area with lots of clay and little natural moisture. It was an outstanding performer all summer and fall and early winter.
In almost all cases, it requires eating a good bit of a plant to get poisoned (except mushrooms as people have mentioned). Azaleas are considered poisonous; their leaves contain alkaloid. But almost every poisonous plants also tastes terrible. Kids and fawns take one bite and spit the leaves/flowers right out.
If azaleas were going to kill children; there would be no next generation in the DC metro area where there is a hedge of azaleas in every other yard.
There is a short list of plants that are REALLY toxic, like plumerias and castor beans. I wouldn't plant these in my hard if I had small children.
But the majority of plants considered poisonous might cause a mild allergic reaction or maybe a stomach ache, but aren't deadly, and even more often is that they'd have to eat a salad-sized amount of the plant to have any adverse reaction at all. You have to look up what is poisonous about the plant and why. For example, a lot of tree leaves are mildly toxic, but you don't see kids gorging themselves on leaves and you never see any experts recommending you cut down everything in your yard because your kids might eat them.
If children were really prone to be poisoned by plants I think we'd hear about it more often. Instead, the most common plant poisonings we find out about are teenagers intentionally eating copious amounts of something rumored to be hallucinogenic and ending up hospitalized.
There is a very old book called A Treatise on the Theory and Practice of Landscape Gardening by A. J. Downing. He was something of a neighbor of mine, so grew up with the old Dutch influences. Apparently 'a plethora of minutiae' was a recognized design style even then. There are drawings of 'designs' consisting of a multitude of small, intricately shaped beds. That is what this is reminding me of. The beds are really too small for anything but regular, Victorian bedding plants. Back then, these were status symbols because they meant the garden owner had access to a greenhouse. Now, they can still mean the garden owner has access to a greenhouse, but means a lot less now.
My first thoughts when shown the picture were the same as Flora's. The corner beds should be made deeper to accommodate a larger range of plants. If the idea is to get a lot more garden area in a symmetrical design, then maybe a mirror image of those beds across a diagonal line.
For sure I appreciate the advice mad_gallica and flora_uk as I have decided to not 'do' my proposed medallion. But I will keep the existing corner perennial garden and the two undeveloped 'side arc' sections as shown. These 2 'add ons' will be planted with mostly annuals. Because of this, by the end of next summer I should be able to see the full effect of these 3 adjacent gardens. If it doesn't look right at that point changes can be made in time for the following year.
Last year I wanted certain plant.Found just just 1 plant. And wanted 6. So I got it from Blue-Stone. Even with shipping was cheaper. And such nice plants. Packed extra well. Just watered and bloomed in 6 weeks. Got list made out for them again.
Depending on what you are looking for...Hallson sends great plants and I have gotten good size at a reasonable price from Santa Rosa Gardens. But I agree with others if you can try to search locally you will not do better with any online company that I have dealt with.
The worst thing here is that buds on tree peonies begin to open. I lost 2 young plants due to this some years ago. What to do?? Apart from that daylilies begin to grow, even the dormant ones, eranthis opens, and Helleborus orientalis made flower buds.
I get a soil test done. My roses are doing fine. The only problem I had with them were Dahlia bulbs overcrowding their root space. I had no idea how large the bulb's can get...whoa!
The annuals took off like lightening! I do have 2 foxgloves that look like they are still growing. I just have one Lupine left. The Butterfly bushes had to be removed. Too Large.
Thanks for the links. I'm just going to have a soil test done.
I dug dormant perennials one winter after an ice storm so we could pull out some stumps. I kept dirt around the roots and crammed them all in cardboard boxes, then put them in my unheated dark shed for two or three weeks, then replanted them. I think it was around early February. As far as I know, all of them lived. My only problem was knowing what was what. I used to know all the names of my hostas and huecheras but not after that.
Thank you for your thoughts, I appreciate your replies. You've confirmed for me that a peony may be just what I need here (although $$$, I need 4-5!). I think I may just have a better shot with spring blooming shrubs. Has anyone tried 'Yankee Doodle Dandy'? Or any other suggestions for a fragrant, double dark pink?
I plan to mix in a couple amsonia, maybe Sib irises among them. I have peach-colored daylilies, purple heuchera, pulmonaria and hosta for the front, and plan to mix with annuals like impatiens for color.
gardencrazy wrote:
RED in SHADE!
That is good to hear but can you clarify as to how much shade your Spigellas experience?
I have Kalimeris Blue Star, by dividing they now number 50+. I do trim all season keeping at about 18" if not it will flop in rain. It's fabulous, covered head to toe with blue flowers from beginning of June to about 3rd week of Sept. No disease issues. Seems to like division about every 3 years to keep crown healthy. I've grown it now 10+ years in northern Illinois. Only bothered one year by a second invasion of sawfly larvae. It's like having an aster that blooms almost all season. Pat